HHS Rolls Out PPE Demand Forecast to Boost U.S. Manufacturing
- The Department of Health and Human Services is releasing a forecast of its personal protective equipment demand, aiming to give American manufacturers greater predictability and strengthen domestic supply chains.
- The new policy requires each HHS division to maintain a forecast of its PPE needs, covering purchases acquired through all methods, with forecasts updated quarterly. The policy implements a pandemic-era law aimed at strengthening efforts to bring PPE production back to the U.S.
- Anthony Figliola, principal deputy assistant secretary and a member of the president’s Made in America Council, said the forecast gives domestic PPE makers clearer visibility into future demand so they can hire workers, invest in equipment and keep production capacity ready.
- The move comes after the COVID-19 pandemic exposed U.S. dependence on other countries for PPE and other manufactured medical goods.
Lineman Electrocuted after Utility Pole Falls into Standing Water
- A lineman for Farmer’s Electric Cooperative from Clovis, New Mexico, died Friday after being electrocuted while repairing a utility pole in a rural area in Curry County.
- Curry County sheriff’s deputies and the Clovis Fire Department responded to a reported industrial accident and found Massey in several feet of standing water, where rescuers began rendering aid.
- Massey was transported by ambulance to Plains Regional Medical Center but did not survive his injuries.
- Authorities said the utility pole, which had been leaning following recent heavy rainfall, unexpectedly fell into the standing water where Massey was working, causing him to come into contact with electricity.
Plastics Worker Suffers Burns After Explosion Sparks Fire
- A worker with Franklin Plastics in Battle Creek, Michigan, was injured in an explosion that caused a fire at the company’s facility on Hill Brady Road near Skyline Drive on Sept. 28.
- The Battle Creek Fire Department and LifeCare Ambulance responded to the scene, where first responders saw heavy smoke coming from an open bay door.
- Crews helped the injured worker, who suffered burns to their arms, chest and face in the explosion, to an ambulance.
- The worker’s condition remains unknown, according to a Sept. 29 press release from the city of Battle Creek.